Enjoy the music AND the winning cakes while supporting programs and services for older adults. $5 for adults ($3 for kids) gets you a plateful of samples from all the winning cakes, plus a glass of milk or a cup of coffee to wash it all down!

Be sure to bring a few extra dollars to purchase a cake to take home. After the cutting of the champion cakes takes place, the real fun begins. The rest of the cakes are auctioned off! Here's a chance to put your money where your mouth is. Buying chocolate for a good cause is a good thing, right? Believe me, there are no "losers" in this cake display!

Are you a baker? Register now! Bakers who would like to enter their favorite chocolate cake or cheesecake should do so no later than Wednesday, February 4th, 5pm. Click on the link above for more details.

Check This Out … The index of tunes from Marya Katz's newest compilation of tunes, Dulcimations VII, appears below. The book is full of (mostly) traditional jigs, reels, hornpipes, breakdowns, songs, marches, waltzes, etc - arranged in 2-parts for hammered dulcimer - with lots of interesting notes about the tunes.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

This past Monday I attended Marya Katz's all-day workshop called, "A Toast to the Table" or "Eat, Drink, and be Merry!" in which she taught tune arrangements from her newly self-published book, Dulcimations VII. The tunes in the new book (61 in all) have titles related somehow to food and drink and having fun with friends. Sounds inviting, doesn't it?

The really fun thing about these arrangements is they are designed to be played with a friend! Each tune has been arranged as a duet … one person plays the tune, the other plays a harmony line or a rhythmic backup. Each part in itself is not too complex, but together they create a beautiful sound.

Suggested chord progressions are included, and while Marya's arrangements have been written with hammered dulcimer players in mind, they would be appropriate for other instruments as well. Perhaps you have a friend who plays the dulcimer ... or the recorder, or the guitar, or something else. You've been thinking it would be fun to try playing some music together, but you don't know where to start. This book gives you that starting place.

Playing music with friends is one of the most satisfying and enjoyable things I do for fun. I encourage everyone to find a music buddy and start having fun!

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Ha ha! Got your attention! I found that bit of wisdom in my fortune cookie a few weeks ago.

No forbidden fruit here, but did you know that there is a slow jam scheduled once a month in Cary? I tend to assume that everyone knows about these things, only to be surprised that I am wrong!

The jam is designed for beginning to intermediate players … a great place to pick up new tunes, work on ear training, practice common repertoire with others, share ideas, try playing backup, meet new friends, and just have fun playing music! While it is especially intended for hammered dulcimer players, other acoustic instruments are welcome.

Here are the details:

Held the 2nd Sunday of each month, 2:00 - 4:00pm

Community of Christ Church, 912 W Chatham Street, Cary, NC

Viola Suddaby is the facilitator

Just missed the January meeting ... but why not put this on your calendar as you make plans to improve your playing in the new year?

Here are the dates for the next three months:

February 8

March 8

April 12

Contact Viola with questions or to be added to the email list.
Don't know what a jam is? Read this blog post from October 9, 2014

Friday, January 2, 2015

We have turned the calendar page and mid-January will be here before you know it! What better way to start the year than to attend a day-long dulcimer workshop?Check This Out … Marya Katz will continue her traditional offering of a day-long hammer dulcimer workshop in Winston Salem on Martin Luther King day. This year's topic will be "A Toast to the Table" (or "Eat, Drink, and Be Merry") - presenting a collection of duets for hammer dulcimer friends to play together.

I can't wait to catch up with friends and spend the day playing music. Won't you grab a friend (or two) and join me for an enjoyable day of music under the Marya's expert guidance? Here's the scoop:

MLK Monday, January 19, 2015

9:00am - 3:30pm

College Park Baptist Church

Winston-Salem, NC

Fee: $50 pre-registration, $60 at the door

Includes lunch

Marya will send lead sheets out in January to all who have pre-registered.